DESCRIPTION: (Applicant's Description) The Merit Care Roger Maris Cancer Center, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Hospice of the Red River Valley propose to improve the quality of life of patients and families by developing a model medical education curriculum in palliative and hospice care as a part of the second,third, and fourth year medical school educational structure at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine. The objectives of this application are: to develop a curriculum in palliative care for medical students, to pilot test that curriculum, and from the evaluation of the pilot establish a model which may be permanently incorporated into the University of North Dakota core curriculum and transportable to other medical schools. The curriculum will be highly experiential/clinical in nature. In addition to symptom management, it will focus on developing sensitivity to the physical, psychological, spiritual, social, and ethical needs of the terminally ill and their families. The medical student will have the opportunity to work as part of a hospice interdisciplinary team caring for patients in a home setting. The application affords the opportunity to develop a curriculum in a medical school which is truly rural, has a strong primary care focus, includes Native American medical students, and has significant potential to improve palliative care across the state of North Dakota.